Beach For Days

In Chania we stayed on Nea Chora Beach which was one of the longest stretches of sand we’d seen on our trip so far. This ended up being nothing compared to the 13 kilometers of beach out front of our place in Rethymno. Being the shoulder season it was really quiet and we had our pick of beach chairs set up by the various restaurants. I don’t know what it’s like in high season but most of the chairs were around five Euro which included a drink and umbrella.

Crete is a very large island and you could spend weeks exploring it. We chose to spend 5 nights in Chania and 5 in Rethymno and then move on to explore some of the smaller islands. We chose to stay in the north because it was easier to travel by public transport, and unfortunately we had to rely on public transport.

Regrets

We did not get an international driver’s permit! For two people who travel regularly this was an embarrassing oversight. We simply didn’t think about it with everything else we had to organize before we left. Obviously if we were to do it again we would have had this at the top of our to do list. It allows you so much more freedom and we could have done a lot more adventuring, but we dropped the ball on that one. And yes, there are places that will rent you a vehicle if you don’t have an international permit but you are taking a big risk. We did some reading and asked some rental places and basically if you get into an accident you’re screwed. You can also be pulled over randomly by police who will check to see if you have the appropriate papers and the fines are steep. We also found out that while road fatalities have dropped significantly the country still has one of the highest rates of traffic-related deaths, proportionate to its population, in the European Union. This isn’t all that surprising to me seeing that zebra crossings (cross walks) appear to be purely decorative and there is a lot of hard peddle use. Hit the gas to move a meter and the hit the brakes. Honk at everything.

And yes, there are a ton of places that tell you they can issue you a permit but after some reading I found out that these are not legit and that you should go through AAA or equivalent before leaving your country. Live and learn. Speaking of…

Airbnb

I’ve had my rants about cruise ships and the problems they cause. Well, now I’m that a-hole. We have stayed exclusively in Airbnbs. We feel it’s much more personalized and you get a far more local experience. We had not heard anything negative about Airbnb during our travels through Europe. Until now. We saw some graffiti in town and after talking to the locals we discovered that Airbnb has led to a housing crisis. Basically anyone who at one point would rent their place long term for a reasonable rate has seen what renting short term to tourists can bring in and now the prices have sky rocketed and Greeks can no longer afford to rent. Or, they can rent a place but only for the low season and then they are left without a place during the season that matters most. Rethymno has one of the best universities in Greece, and it’s free, however students struggle to attend since they cannot afford to live in the city because the cost of a room is too high. It is now difficult for restaurants to get wait staff, and even doctors, nurses and teachers are leaving for other places as a result. There is no legal framework to regulate this. The unemployment rate is currently at 17%.

Restaurants

The beach front consisted of endless restaurants and about half of them were still open. Many close down during the first weeks of October, but there were still a ton to choose from. Lissus, which was right next door was one of the most exciting meals for me. They had onion rings. I know this seems very odd considering all the amazing food here but I haven’t seen onion rings since we left Canada. It was like forbidden fruit. They were delicious. We have seen chicken wings on occasion and that has gotten Andre really excited until he realized that servings were generally between 3-5 wings at a cost of around three to four Canadian dollars per wing! Ridiculous.

If you’re looking for food in this area here are a few good spots:

Souvlaki Bar (a few blocks off the beach) – This was a great place for gyros, and true to our Bratislavan’s friend’s word there are always fries inside. This place is also home to the world’s largest toilet paper. I don’t know why I found this so amusing but I did and I put some in my purse to show Andre when we got home. I cried laughing. No, I had not been drinking.

Guru Restaurant – Great for breakfast. They also serve up sushi but it’s going to cost you. 

Kim Long – Chinese food for a nice change of pace.

Manolis Place

Where to start… I found this place randomly looking through Google Map reviews. I clicked on their website and as soon as I saw his photo I had to meet him. I didn’t care what the food was like. So off we went to Manolis Place. The food was good, but the vibe was better. This guy is a real character.

Manolis runs the place, taking all the orders, his son delivers all the food, his wife does the cooking, and his daughter runs the register and the bar. It’s a busy place and he is fast. He’s all business and no small talk when he’s running but has lots of time to chat and have a laugh when it’s slower.

This place serves up a tiny tasting plate before your meal and as usual you get a little dessert and a shot afterward. One evening we noticed Manolis was drinking a shot of Raki with each of his tables after their meals. There were a decent amount of tables and we were one of the last to settle up so we had watched his speed slow and his straight stride become a touch wobbly. He was having a great time and so was everyone else. So of course when it came to our turn we also had his homemade and branded bottle of Raki. There was no was I was leaving without a photo.

Rethymno Town

The weather has been extraordinarily good while we have been in Greece. We knew that October could be colder and rainier but we took the gamble because of how hot the weather has been in Europe this year. Almost every day has been a beach day, so one morning when it was looking less promising we decided to take a little walking tour through the town. These tend to be the days that Andre favors for excursions so that he’s not uncomfortably hot, oh I love my little sweaty monkey 😉 Andre clearly stole my computer here and decided to add that little detail of his own, thinking I wouldn’t be proofing this again. I’m leaving it in as part of his punishment. Where was I? Yes, so we began walking around the castle walls and noticed some dark clouds coming in. Before we had a chance to make it to the interior the drops started falling. Look at that sky. Not hard to predict.

 

We made it to a restaurant just in time and it absolutely poured down. Unfortuately as you see in the video, some people got a bit wet. We waited it out with a mixed plate of dips and Greek treats and some beverages. Eventually the skies cleared and the sun came out and we managed to work our way through the town. It was nothing compared to the business of Chania Town but there were still a decent number of tourists.

It’s quite a cool little town with some street art in the main square and beautiful little cobblestone side streets to explore. There are also a handful of museums, churches, mosques, points of interest, and monuments. Nice place, but I’m really excited to explore some of the smaller islands.

97 days in…

Now to surprise a friend in Santorini!